*If the Appeal is faxed to the Court, contact the Court to confirm that the Notice of Appeal is received. The Court is not responsible for faxed, but unconfirmed, Notices of Appeal.

Send your Notice of Appeal Form directly to the Court. Do not send it to the VA!

A Notice of Appeal will still be considered to be on time even if the Court does not receive it within the 120-day deadline IF you mailed it to the Court’s correct address AND it contains a legible U.S. Postal Service postmark dated within the 120-day time limit.

Regular, first class mail is fine. You do not need to send it express mail, priority mail, or certified mail.

Note that a Federal Express, UPS or other delivery service date stamp, or foreign postal service postmark, does not count, and if you send your Notice of Appeal in any of these ways, the date the Court actually receives your Notice of Appeal will be your filing date.

What happens if the Court rules in my favor? How much money will I receive?

If the Court believes your appeal has merit, usually it will remand (send back) your case to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals for additional action or to resolve the question that has been appealed.

Only rarely does the Court reverse a BVA decision or substitute a decision of its own.

Even if the Court decides you are entitled to benefits, the VA determines how much money is owed to you.

Once your case has returned to the BVA for resolution by the VA at the Court’s direction, there may be basis for another appeal if you think VA:

Did not pay you all the money that you believe you should have received

OR

Did not grant the proper or complete rating.

What happens if my case is sent back to the Board of Veterans Appeals?

If the Court remands your case, the BVA will review its original decision as directed by the Court. The BVA may also send your case to a VA regional office (or the Appeals Management Center) for additional information, especially if an examination is requested.
If you have hired a lawyer, he or she may continue to assist you if the case is returned to the BVA.

Do I need a lawyer to represent me after a remand, after it is sent back to the BVA?

This decision is strictly up to you. You may find it helpful to have someone to assist you with the remand process. You may ask your appeals attorney if they will continue with your case.
If your lawyer does not continue to help you, you may want to contact a veterans’ service organization who can help.

If you worked with a veterans’ service organization before, you may have previously given a power of attorney to them and they can assist you with your remanded case.

What if I disagree with the decision of the Court?

You or your lawyer can ask the Court to reconsider its decision. You have 21 days from the date of the Court’s decision to do this.

If your case was decided by a single judge, you can also ask for review by a panel (three judges) of the Court, and

If your case was decided by a panel, you can ask for review by the entire Court (seven judges).

If the Court rules against you on these requests, you may be able to appeal to a higher court—the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

That Court may only review certain decisions of the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.

Remember that neither the Pro Bono Program, nor the lawyers in the Program, are required to provide assistance to you beyond the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. Your lawyer can explain your options further.

This law permits an appellant (via the attorney) to ask the government to pay his or her lawyer’s fees and expenses.

EAJA fees can only be filed if the lawyer who represents you wins. “Winning” for EAJA purposes is sometimes complicated.

Whether or not your case qualifies under EAJA depends on the result in your case and the reason the case was resolved in a particular way. If it seems your case could qualify under EAJA, your lawyer will submit an EAJA claim to the Court.

An EAJA award does not reduce or affect any money that you might receive from the VA. This money is not part of your VA benefits, and is not intended to be compensation for you.

EAJA represents payment to the lawyer for the work that he or she did on your appeal. For this reason, the retainer agreement that you signed with your lawyer at the beginning of your case may contain a power of attorney that permits your lawyer to cash the EAJA check.